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State Supreme Court
Plaintiffs lose bet that casino is liable for fatal charter bus crash
JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - A Mississippi casino that offered customers “promo cash” and free meal tickets isn’t liable for the fatal crash of a charter bus they took to get there, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled, rejecting plaintiff arguments a casino employee encouraged the bus to continue on despite bad weather.
State Supreme Court
Law might protect officer who turned siren on right before fatal crash
DENVER (Legal Newsline) - A Colorado law providing immunity to police officers against most tort lawsuits may protect an officer who switched on his flashing lights and siren five seconds before T-boning a van in a highway intersection, killing the two men inside.
State Supreme Court
Parents can't sue over death of infant, but his estate can
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Parents who sued over the death of their infant child failed to file the proper administrative claims first, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled, but the estate of the child can continue with a $15 million lawsuit claiming a misplaced feeding tube caused the baby’s death.
State Supreme Court
Teacher who faked fall gets demoted but keeps job
TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) - A teacher who was caught on video faking the circumstances of her fall down the stairs can be demoted but doesn’t have to lose her job, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled, restoring an arbitrator’s decision that an appeals court had vacated.
State Supreme Court
Medical malpractice, not 'wrongful birth' to blame for $35 million verdict
HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - It was medical malpractice, not “wrongful birth” that provided the grounds for a $35 million judgment against the State of Connecticut over a permanently disabled child born after his mother may have been infected with virus-tainted sperm.
State Supreme Court
Black workers can sue Harley-Davidson over claims of nooses, racist graffiti at plant
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (Legal Newsline) - Claims that African-American workers were subjected to nooses, Confederate flags and racist graffiti at a Harley-Davidson factory are enough to allow a hostile workplace suit to proceed even if the plaintiffs never saw such things themselves, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled.
State Supreme Court
Gun-seller defeats lawsuit by two shot New Hampshire cops
CONCORD, N.H. (Legal Newsline) - New Hampshire cops who were shot can't take to trial the company that sold the firearm, the state Supreme Court ruled Jan. 30.
State Supreme Court
Iowa jurors now need an expert to explain cow management
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Iowa jurors no longer can be counted upon to understand the basics of livestock management, the state’s highest court ruled, affirming the dismissal of a lawsuit by a truck driver who was injured after his vehicle plowed into a loose cow.
State Supreme Court
Adult injured at kids' playground cant sue, Nevada court says
LAS VEGAS (Legal Newsline) - A law protecting property owners against lawsuits stemming from “recreational activities” shields a Nevada city from a lawsuit filed by a woman who tripped over the edge of a protective mat under a children’s slide and broke her leg in multiple places.
State Supreme Court
Inmate who refused medicine can sue doctors for malpractice
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - A prison inmate who stopped taking prescription medicine after complaining about side effects can sue his doctors for malpractice and deliberate indifference for refusing to provide an alternate medication, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled, reversing a trial court’s dismissal of the prisoner’s lawsuit.
State Supreme Court
'No punt' football coach wins $200K in lawsuit over email criticizing his paperwork
COLUMBIA, S.C. (Legal Newsline) - A high school football coach who was demoted after adopting a disastrous “no punt” strategy can keep $200,000 a jury awarded him in a lawsuit over an email criticizing his paperwork skills, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled.
State Supreme Court
Lawsuit struck against doctor who delayed antivenom for snakebite victim
AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) - Parents who wanted $1 million in compensation for the suffering of their daughter after she was bitten by a rattlesnake have no case against the emergency-room doctor who refused to immediately administer antivenom, the Texas Supreme Court ruled.
State Supreme Court
FirstEnergy bribery suspect facing seizure of $8 million
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) - A man accused of accepting a multimillion-dollar bribe from FirstEnergy in a scheme that also sent the former speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives to jail may face the seizure of $8 million after the Ohio Supreme Court reversed an appellate ruling striking down a court order attaching his assets.
State Supreme Court
Rape ruling: Washington State Univ. had no duty to protect student off-campus
OLYMPIA, Wash. (Legal Newsline) - Washington State University had no legal duty to protect a freshman from being raped by a fellow student at an off-campus party, the Washington Supreme Court ruled, rejecting the plaintiff’s argument the school’s “special relationship” with students should extend past the campus borders.
State Supreme Court
Time limit on Ohio med-mal cases applies to wrongful death claims, split decision says
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) - A four-year time limit on filing lawsuits over “medical claims” includes wrongful-death claims based on medical malpractice, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in a decision opposed by trial lawyers and three of the court’s justices.
State Supreme Court
Bright yellow padding no barrier to trial over skier's death at Sun Valley
BOISE, Idaho (Legal Newsline) - The famous Sun Valley ski resort must face a lawsuit by the widow of a man who died after crashing into a snowmaking machine on a beginner run, the Idaho Supreme Court said, ruling a jury must decide whether the padding met the standard for warnings.
State Supreme Court
Woman who blackmailed boss for $12M in Bitcoin and cars must pay up
LAS VEGAS (Legal Newsline) - A woman who blackmailed her former boss and lover into handing over $12 million worth of Bitcoin and valuables, including a Ferrari automobile, is subject to a multimillion-dollar default judgment after failing to show up in court, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled.
State Supreme Court
Parents suing Minnesota schools must prove racial imbalance caused education gap
ST. PAUL, Minn. (Legal Newsline) - Parents who sued the State of Minnesota over racially imbalanced schools in Minneapolis and St. Paul must show the racial differences caused educational shortfalls in order to prove a violation of the state constitution, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled.
State Supreme Court
Virginia teacher fired for avoiding pronouns entirely can sue school district
RICHMOND, Va. (Legal Newsline) - The Virginia Supreme Court ruled a teacher can sue the school district that fired him for calling a transgender student by his preferred names but avoiding using third-person pronouns at all, saying the disciplinary action may have violated the teacher’s religious rights.
State Supreme Court
Plastic surgeon who sued over bad Yelp review loses verdict
TOPEKA, Kan. (Legal Newsline) - A plastic surgeon who won a jury verdict against a former patient who submitted bad Yelp reviews under a fake name failed to prove his reputation took a hit, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled, affirming the reversal of a finding of defamation.